In general terms, the solution to this problem is known and consists in imparting to at least one of the two connector portions to be coupled together a certain amount of freedom of movement relative to its support, such that displacement thereof after it comes into contact with the other connector portion causes the axes of the two connector portions to be brought substantially into alignment.
Practical solutions have been provided for connectors that are generally in the form of right circular cylinders, and these solutions, which make use of a plurality of coaxial boxes or box portions supported by springs, make it possible to achieve proper coupling even when the two connector portions are presented to each other without being in strict alignment.
However, with such cylindrical connectors, the number of degrees of freedom to be controlled is relatively small because of the axial symmetry in the shape of the connector, so that known solutions in this context remain technologically simple.
In contrast, the problem becomes considerably more complicated when the connector is polygonal in section and for which a transverse offset may be combined with mutual inclination of the two connector portions to be coupled together, thus requiring up to six degrees of freedom to be controlled (three degrees of freedom in translation and three degrees of freedom in rotation). The problem becomes even more complex when the connector is of highly elongate polygonal section, (commonly rectangular in section with long sides that are much longer than the short sides). Any attempt to couple together the two connector portions if they are presented to each other with their respective long sides mutually inclined is almost certain to lead to jamming or even damage one of the connector portions.
The large number of parameters to be controlled when using polygonal section connectors, in particular highly elongate connectors, means that known solutions for cylindrically shaped connectors are ineffective and unsuitable.